1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to photographic apparatus of the type having a spring motor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Photographic apparatus of the type having a spring motor are well known in the art. Representative examples of such apparatus are shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 2,451,820 wherein a manually operable key is provided for winding or energizing a spring motor which is used to drive a pair of processing rollers and a film advancing apparatus; U.S. Pat. No. 3,535,994 wherein manual rotation of a cylinder is effective to wind up the spring of a spring motor which in turn is used to operate a film transport, a shutter, or an indexible flash socket; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,493 wherein a spring motor is wound in response to the user of the camera manually retracting a drawer, the energy thus stored in the spring motor being used to drive a pair of processing rollers during the next photographic cycle.
A basic problem with the cameras of the type described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,451,820 and 3,535,994 is that one must always remember to wind the spring motor in order to insure that there will be a smooth transition between the exposure of one film unit and the positioning of another film unit in the camera's focal plane. If the operator of one of these cameras fails to wind the spring motor prior to exposing the film unit contained therein there may be a loss of valuable time before the operator can expose another film unit. Similarly, the operator of the camera described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,493 must remember that the spring motor has not been charged or wound until the drawer has been returned to its fully retracted position.